DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now settle in, because this particular patch of Tarrant County dirt has carried more history than most states could claim in a lifetime. It starts in January 1941 — before the bombs fell on Pearl Harbor, before the country had committed to anything — when Fort Worth civic advocates, led by a man named Amon G.
Carter, sat down with the U.S. Army and hammered out an agreement. What they agreed to was the construction of an aircraft plant near the city, built specifically to produce B-24 Liberator bombers.
Legislation followed, authorizing a landing field right next to that completed plant — the Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation Plant No. 4 — and that field became known as Tarrant Field, or Tarrant Field Airdrome. Then December 7th, 1941, happened. And just three months after the United States joined World War II, the plant was already in operation.
The Army, recognizing what it had right there — a bomber plant and an airfield practically sharing a fence line — moved forward to build an Air Base designed to put that proximity to work. The whole point was B-24 crew training, and they weren't wastin' any time. That air base opened in August 1942.
By May 1943, it had a proper name: Fort Worth Army Air Field. FWAAF, if you're the kind who likes initials. Between 1942 and 1944, more than four thousand pilots trained on that ground.
Four thousand. And through those pilots, Fort Worth contributed substantially to victory for the United States and the Allied Powers. Now, fast forward to late January 1948.
The Army Air Field gets a new name — and this one carries weight. It was renamed Carswell Air Force Base, in honor of a Fort Worth native, Major Horace S. Carswell, Jr., a Medal of Honor recipient.
A hometown son, memorialized in the name of the very base his city helped build. The Cold War was just getting its legs under it, and Carswell was about to become one of its most consequential addresses. The base was brought into the U.S.
Air Force Strategic Air Command — SAC — and it became a highly visible symbol of nuclear deterrence and force projection. And here's the detail that makes you sit up straight: Carswell was the first SAC base to be equipped with the B-36 Peacemaker bomber. And that bomber was Fort Worth-produced.
Built close, flown from here. Then, by 1959, the base transitioned to the B-52 Stratofortress — the legendary one, the one that defined an era. In 1972, those B-52s stationed at Carswell participated in Operation Linebacker II — the most powerful SAC campaign of the entire Vietnam War.
Think about that quiet moment whenever you're driving past that stretch of ground. Then the Cold War ended. And in September 1993, Carswell Air Force Base closed.
A chapter, shut. But the land had one more turn in it. In October 1994 — just a year later — the site reopened as Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base.
This time supporting active duty and reserve units spanning the Navy, the Marine Corps, the Army, the Air Force, and the Texas Air National Guard. Through the Global War on Terrorism, this base greatly aided the training and support of the U.S. Military, carrying forward what the marker calls a long tradition of professional excellence in the defense of the Nation.
From a negotiating table in January 1941 to a joint reserve base still standing today — that's not just a military installation. That's Fort Worth, shaping the course of American history from the same piece of Tarrant County ground, decade after decade.
What the marker says
By January 1941, negotiations between Fort Worth civic advocates, led by Amon G. Carter, and the U.S. Army yielded an agreement to construct an aircraft plant near the city to build B-24 Liberator bombers. Legislation later authorized the creation of a landing field adjacent to the completed Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation Plant No. 4 which became Tarrant Field/Tarrant Field Airdrome. Three months after the U.S. joined World War II, the plant was in operation and the Army moved forward to create an Air Base to utilize this proximity between sites to facilitate B-24 crew training. This air base opened in August 1942 and was named Fort Worth Army Air Field (FWAAF) in May 1943, training more than 4,000 pilots between 1942 and 1944. It allowed the city to contribute substantially to victory for the U.S. and Allied Powers. In late January 1948, FWAAF was renamed Carswell Air Force Base in honor of Fort Worth native and Medal of Honor recipient Major Horace S. Carswell, Jr. The site became a key U.S. Air Force Strategic Air Command (SAC) base during the Cold War, serving as a highly visible symbol of nuclear deterrence and force projection. The site was the first SAC base to be equipped with the Fort Worth-produced B-36 Peacemaker bomber and transitioned by 1959 to the legendary B-52 Stratofortress bomber. In 1972, B-52s stationed here participated in the most powerful SAC campaign of the Vietnam War, Operation Linebacker II. After the end of the Cold War, Carswell AFB closed in September 1993. In October 1994, the site reopened as Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base, supporting active duty and reserve units in the Navy, Marine Corps, Army, Air Force, and the Texas Air National Guard. This base greatly aided training and support of the U.S. Military during the Global War on Terrorism and continues a long tradition of professional excellence in the defense of the Nation. (2016)